The housing market boom in San Diego County is good news for homes sellers but not so much for first-time home buyers and renters.
In recent years, the U.S. housing market has recovered from the financial crisis but the supply is so limited in San Diego, prices are skyrocketing.
If you already own a home, good news for you since it will be worth more. But if you’re a first-time buyer, it has become even harder to afford a home in San Diego.
The process to obtain building permits is really slow in San Diego, says Mark Goldman, a real estate professor at San Diego State University. This is causing the increasing gap between supply and demand.
“In San Diego right now, when a house goes on the market, many times they're sold within days of going on the MLS, and a lot of times they don't even make it to the MLS," he says.
One first-time home buyer tells NBC 7 San Diego the experience was a lot harder and stressful that she had anticipated. Erin Glenny was bidding against 18 others for a home, and she was having to go higher and higher in her offer.
In an effort to stand out, Glenny wrote a letter to the home seller that included pictures of her family.
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“You know, I had to work it on every angle," she says.
But others are not so lucky.
According to Goldman, homes prices near the coastline are the highest right now. Some homes on the market in places like Encinitas and Del Mar have gone up by 33 percent since 2004.
Since people are having a more difficult time purchasing homes, they are forced to rent, which drives up rent prices around the county. In some case, renting can be the same price or even more than a mortgage.
